Luckily, Major Jeffrey Linscott, a retired U.S. Air Force pilot who's the president of Boring, Ore.-based JL Aviation, stood ready to take our questions, as well as supply the excellent pictures of St. Helens and other volcanoes that are in the accompanying gallery. Linscott uses his Bell Jetranger to study severe volcanoes.

He'll be working in Alaska next month as he flies into Mount Veniaminof and Mount Pavlof, which are both in "erupt" mode.

Here's what Linscott had to say about St. Helens.

Is it really a good time to be on alert for an eruption? Meaning, is it seasonal? Or should we always be ready?

We tend to spend about one full month a year working on volcanoes. Summer seems to be our busy season.

Next month, I am headed to Alaska to work on Mount Veniaminof and Mount Pavlof, which are currently in erupt mode. That being said, we are headquartered at airport OR72 and are always ready to take flight whether to work on an erupting volcano, suppress a fire or perform a rescue operation through vast areas spreading across Oregon into the state of Washington. If they call, we launch. Our Bell Helicopters are always ready.

What should newbie volcano watchers be watching at St. Helens?

I believe Mount St. Helens is among the most monitored volcanoes. There’s an extensive array of hydrology, seismology, and GPS telemetry systems operated by the U.S. Geological Survey at work. The Cascade Volcano Observatory does an outstanding job overseeing the volcano and keeping the public informed of its activity.

I remember in mid-September of 2004, I landed on the glacier behind the 1980-86 dome so the USGS could collect some rock samples. The next day, I flew into the crater and noticed the same area we had landed the previous day was fractured. It turned out to be one of a series of events leading up to its ultimate eruption.

What’s the best part about your job?

The best part about my job — aside from the obvious of flying my Bell 206 helicopters every day and performing missions that help save lives — is as simple as working with our clients with research and exciting new projects. The look of excitement in the eyes of a scientist after all samples are collected, data is calculated and the work is done, has always been an special enjoyment of mine to witness. We feel like part of the team by helping our clients achieve their goals.

What’s the coolest thing you’ve ever seen up close, at St. Helen’s or otherwise?

One of my most memorable experiences was when I was dredging hot rock with Dr. John Palister with the CVO on a routine monitoring mission on Mount St. Helens. All of the sudden, the spine below me elevated about 15 feet in a matter of seconds. I watched the dome grow below me at an unbelievable pace.

It was a spectacular moment to actually witness the ground moving underneath me. Seeing the actions of any volcano leaves a lasting impression.

In fact, last summer, I was flying with Dr. Chris Waythomas with the Alaska Volcano Observatory into Veniominof Volcano. The dome was shooting materials up to five-meters wide to heights of more than 1,000 feet in the air. The gas released created a sonic boom and vapor cloud similar to a jet flying supersonic speeds. It produced shock waves that we could hear almost a mile away from inside the helicopter.